The Court of Appeal (Civil Division) followed in the footsteps of the Supreme Court this week by live-streaming its judgments.
A dispute over Premier League football club West Ham United’s use of the stadium that was built for the 2012 London Olympics, heard in Court 71 before the Master of the Rolls, Lord Justice Lewison and Lady Justice Asplin, made legal history as the first Court of Appeal hearing to be live-streamed in full. WH Holding Ltd v E20 Stadium concerns the seating capacity that should be made available to the London club for home fixtures at what is now known as the London Stadium in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
Sir Terence Etherton, Master of the Rolls, said: ‘The first case is a high profile one with a great deal of public interest, which is why it has been selected for the public pilot.
‘The intention is to have up to three appeal hearings being live-streamed in the near future, assuming that all works well with the public pilot. We hope that as well as opening up the court’s work to a mass audience, the broadcasts will increase public confidence in the system.’
The live streaming will be available through the judiciary website, www.judiciary.uk. Supreme Court cases have been live-streamed since 2009. The media have been allowed to film and broadcast certain selected Court of Appeal hearings only since 2013.
The court will select cases for live-streaming. Viewers see a split screen, one half showing the judicial bench and the other showing the front rows of counsel.
If the pilot runs smoothly, Sir Terence will seek to extend live-streaming to family appeals, where broadcasting is currently prohibited.
